European Champions Cup Round 2

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Munster v Leicester Tigers
Location - Thomond Park
Light Rain, 11 Degrees, 18mph WSW winds

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Munster

01. Dave Kilcoyne	09. Conor Murray
02. Duncan Casey	10. Ian Keatley
03. Stephen Archer
04. Dave Foley	11. Simon Zebo
05. Paul O'Connell	12. Denis Hurley
06. Peter O'Mahony	13. Andrew Smith
07. Tommy O'Donnell	14. Andrew Conway
08. CJ Stander	15. Felix Jones

:-
16 Eusebio Guinazu, 17 James Cronin, 18 BJ Botha, 19 Billy Holland, 20 Robin Copeland, 21 Duncan Williams, 22 JJ Hanrahan, 23 Gerhard van den Heever

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Leicester Tigers
Manager – LukeLovesLuka

EQ Requirements breached. Tom Johnson promoted and the bench goes one short.

01. Alex Corbisiero	09. Micky Young
02. Agustin Creevy	10. Paddy Jackson (k)
03. Cencus Johnston
04. Kearnan Myall	11. Ugo Monye
05. Victor Matfield (c)	12. Tamati Ellison
06. Tom Johnson	13. Rene Ranger
07. Francois Louw	14. Drew Mitchell
08. Thomas Waldrom	15. Sean Maitland

.
16. Christopher Tolofua 17. Max Lahiff 18. Paul Doran-Jones 19. Tom Price 20.  21. Dwayne Peel 22. Brock James 23. Matt Banahan

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Harlequins v Toulouse
Location - Twickenham Stoop
Heavy Rain, 16 Degrees, 12mph SSW winds

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Harlequins
Manager – Steven_Sharks

01. Tony Woodcock	09. Ruan Pienaar
02. Schalk Brits	10. Steven Myler (k)
03. Kieran Brookes
04. Bakkies Botha	11. Jack Nowell
05. George Kruis	12. Jamie Roberts
06. Jamie Gibson	13. Jan Serfontein
07. Tom Wood (c)	14. Frank Halai
08. Damien Chouly	15. Juan Martin Hernandez

:-
16. Rob Buchanan 17. Gjorji Jgenti 18. John Afoa 19. Jim Hamilton 20. Mamuka Gorgodze 21. Karl Dickson 22. Colin Slade 23. Jonathan Joseph

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Toulouse

01. Gürthro Steenkamp	09. Jean-Marc Doussain
02. Corey Flynn	10. Luke McAlister
03. Census Johnston
04. Joe Tekori	11. Timoci Matanavou
05. Yoann Maestri	12. Gaël Fickou
06. Yacouba Camara	13. Florian Fritz
07. Thierry Dusautoir (c)	14. Yoann Huget
08. Imanol Harinordoquy	15. Maxime Médard

:- 
16 Julien Marchand, 17 Kisi Pulu, 18 Cyril Baille, 19 Patricio Albacete, 20 Edwin Maka, 21 Sébastien Bézy, 22 Toby Flood, 23 Vincent Clerc

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London Wasps v Ospreys
Location - Adams Park
Heavy Rain, 16 Degrees, 12mph SSW winds

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Wasps
Manager: Ozzy3213     
               

01. Joe Marler	09. Aaron Smith
02. Bismarck du Plesiss	10. Aaron Cruden
03. Dave Wilson
04. Romain Millo-Chluski	11. Anthony Watson
05. Sebastien Vahaamahina	12. Ma'a Nonu
06. Jerome Kaino	13. Henry Slade
07. Marcell Coetzee	14. Marland Yarde
08. Duane Vermeulen	15. Delon Armitage

16. Tom Youngs 17. Paul James 18. Ben Alexander 19. Paul Willemse 20. Steffon Armitage 21. Ben Youngs 22. Shane Geraghty 23. Tim Nanai-Williams


Standard wet weather tactics.  Use the boots of Cruden, Slade and Armitage to play for territory, carry close to the ruck and wear the down.  Only open up in the opposition half and if it is completely on to do so.  Blitz defence with Smith sweeping with particular pressure aimed at their backs who have kicking games to hurry them and ensure we win the kicking battle.

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Ospreys

01. Nicky Smith	09. Rhys Webb
02. Scott Baldwin	10. Dan Biggar
03. Dmitri Arhip
04. Lloyd Peers	11. Eli Walker
05. Alun-Wyn Jones (c)	12. Josh Matavesi
06. James King	13. Andrew Bishop
07. Sam Lewis	14. Jeff Hassler
08. Dan Baker	15. Daniel Evans

:- 
16 Scott Otten, 17 Duncan Jones, 18 Aaron Jarvis, 19 Rynier Bernardo, 20 Joe Bearman, 21 Justin Tipuric, 22 Martin Roberts, 23 Sam Davies

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Scarlets v Sale Sharks
Location - Parc y Scarlets
Heavy Rain, 14 Degrees, 15mph W winds

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Scarlets

01. Rob Evans	09. Aled Davies
02. Emyr Phillips	10. Rhys Priestland
03. Samson Lee
04. Jake Ball	11. Kristian Phillips
05. Johan Snyman	12. Scott Williams (c)
06. Aaron Shingler	13. Michael Tagicakibau
07. John Barclay	14. Harry Robinson
08. Rory Pitman	15. Liam Williams

:- 
16 Kirby Myhill, 17 Phil John, 18 Rhodri Jones, 19 George Earle, 20 James Davies, 21 Rhodri Williams, 22 Steven Shingler, 23 Jordan Williams

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 Sale Sharks
Manager – SJE

01. Marcos Ayerza	09. Danny Care
02. David Paice	10. Johnny Sexton
03. Davit Zirakishvilli
04. Dave Attwood	11. Simon Zebo
05. Christian Day	12. Francois Steyn
06. Matt Garvey	13. George Pisi
07. Matt Todd	14. Semesa Rokoduguni
08. Charles Ollivon	15. Willie Le Roux

16. Jack McGrath 17. Tommy Taylor 18. Rabah Slimani 19. Will Skelton 20. Steven Luatua 21. Kieran Marmion 22. JJ Hanrahan 23. Kyle Eastmond

We will adopt a territory first approach and play the game in the Scarlets half forcing them to play from deep.

- Win the kicking dual. Strong and intelligent kickers selected throughout the backline to ensure we dominate the territorial battle. We will constantly put the ball into the corners.

- Tight carrying game. When in opposition territory we will look to carry close to the ruck and suck defenders in, only going wide when it is absolutely on to do so.

- Fast ball is crucial. Mobile pack and physical midfield to clear out rucks and ensure quick ball. We will look to get over the gain line off all carries to make it easier to do so.

- Attack from the scrum. Strong technical front row backed up by a powerful second row will look to build a platform for Ollivon, Care & Sexton. An area we will look to target if winning.

- Make ground from the lineout. Look to throw to the front or middle of the line, get the maul rolling and suck in defenders to create space. If uncontested look to shorten the line and have Ollivon run down the 10/12 channel.

- Straight line blitz defence. Focused on winning the gain line collisions and driving the ball carrier back. Line speed is crucial. Care will sweep behind the line to cover chips and grubbers.

- Counter the opposition kicking game. Our back three have been instructed to sit deep on defence to cover kicks. All are comfortable under the high ball.

- Target the breakdown. Committed to the breakdown with Todd fetching for the ball, supported by the rest of the pack when needed. We will always look to turn the ball over.

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Clermont Auvergne v Northampton Saints
Location - Parc des Sports Marcel Michelin
Sunny, 14 Degrees, 10mph NE winds

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Clermont Auvergne

01. Thomas Domingo	09. Ludovic Radosavljevic
02. Benjamin Kayser	10. Camille Lopez
03. Davit Zirakashvili
04. Jamie Cudmore	11. Zac Guildford
05. Sebastien Vahaamahina	12. Wesley Fofana
06. Fritz Lee	13. Aurélien Rougerie
07. Julien Bonnaire	14. Noa Nakaitaci
08. Damien Chouly (c)	15. Nick Abendanon

:- 
16 John Ulugia, 17 Raphael Chaume, 18 Clement Ric, 19 Loïc Jacquet, 20 Julien Bardy, 21 Thierry Lacrampe, 22 Brock James, 23 Benson Stanley

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Northampton Saints
Manager – Dammit_Chris

01. Mako Vunipola	09. Gareth Davies
02. Dylan Hartley (c)	10. Nick Evans
03. Ramiro Herrera
04. Joe Launchbury	11. Vereniki Goneva
05. Courtney Lawes	12. Matt Giteau
06. Schalk Burger	13. Manu Tuilagi
07. Chris Robshaw	14. Tommy Bowe
08. Sergio Parisse	15. Leigh Halfpenny (k)

:-
16. Rob Webber 17. Trevor Nyakane 18. Logi Mulipola 19. Jonny Gray 20. Billy Vunipola 21. Joe Simpson 22. Julian Savea 23. Ben Foden

Tactics: Clermont have not had the best start to the season, whereas Saints have got try BP in all but one game so far this season and will look to play at a high tempo and intensity, forcing the home team into mistakes and getting our big ball carriers on the ball as early as possible. The aim is to ware down Clermont and then unleash our bench for when the game opens up late on.

Set Piece and Pack: Our pack has been selected for its strong set piece, which is vital to get a second away victory in a row against Clermont, who we beat last year with a team that wasn't as strong as the one we have picked today. Four quality lineout jumpers to mix up the attack, and five full internationals to bring off the bench to keep the pack going forward for 80 minutes. No natural no7 for Clermont so will target this area with our pack.

Control: Picked Evans and Giteau as the 10/12 combination to ensure we win the kicking battle against Clermont. Have Davies at no9 who has more international experience and club games than his counterpart and believer we have the advantage in the no2, 8, 9 and 10 shirts. Halfpenny selected for his goal kicking and to make every penalty we secure count.

Power: Will get the ball to our big ball carriers to keep us getting over the gainline and putting pressure on the home teams defence. Bench is picked for impact and will let us finish strong.

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Newcastle Falcons v Gloucester Rugby
Location - Kingston Park
Light Rain, 12 Degrees, 8mph WNW winds

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Newcastle Falcons
Manager – Driver

01. Matt Mullen	09. Greig Laidlaw
02. Rory Best	10. Owen Farrell
03. Carl Hayman
04. Ed Slater	11. Charlie Sharples
05. Geoff Parling	12. Jean De Villers
06. Dan Lydiate	13. John Davies
07. Will Fraser	14. Charles Pitatau
08. Immanol Harinordiquey	15. Rob Miller

:-
16.George McGuigan 17.Soana Tonga'uhia 18.Scott Wilson 19.Yoaan Maestri 20.Richie McCaw 21.Kieron Read 22.Nick Phipps 23.Ben Smith

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 Gloucester
Manager – anonmattyt

EQ Requirements breached. Cips & Grey promoted and the bench goes two short.

01. Nick Wood	09. Dan Robson
02. Joe Grey	10. Danny Cipriani
03. Nicola Mas
04. Eben Etzbeth	11. Johnny May
05. George Robson	12. Matt Toomua
06. Willem Alberts	13. Juan De Jongh
07. Julien Salvi	14. Hosea Gear
08. Jamie Heaslip	15. Andreas Masi

:-
16 Guthro Steenkamp 17 18 Juan Figallo 19 Elliot Stooke 20 Yacoub Camara 21 TJ Perenara 22 23 Israel Folau

TARGET BREAKDOWN – We have a big mobile physically stronger bunch and will hit rucks with venom. We will Send numbers in and try and effect turnovers or Disrupt ball.we believe the likes of  Alberts Salvi and heaslip has physicality and the power to swamp their backrow.Backed by our  front 5 and this is an area we will flood.

TARGET back 3 – in greasy conditions we will Look to Kick in behind and generally torment them 

TARGET SCRUM – front 5 in good form for  glos. We want  to disrupt their ball and go quickly on ours 

Half backs- Robson in top form will look to threaten around the ruck but his job is to give it to carter who will dictate. 
Carter Will challenge line and kick When necessary. We want to play high tempo and move Newcastle around. We will do this by using runners off ten to smash holes and look to flood.



General - We've selected a team packed with power and physicality. We Have a lot more carriers in the pack and will use this to dominate and get front foot ball. We believe their
Lack of carrying will give is the upper hand. We will use this to run the legs off Newcastle And play an offloading game. When in behind We will Flood through with our quick Backs targeting mismatches  

Line out – We have options galore in Robson etzbeth  Alberts heaslip and will use this to disrupt.
On our ball we will mix It but as game progresses go Off The top more To Get in to there backline 


Defence - Blitz defence with high intensity and big hits, looking to drive past the ball player if the ball hits the deck. Scrum half to sweep behind the defensive line.

Bench - Game changing bench with Palu Cips Perenara etc. Our intention is not to bring on players who played in the bledisloe last week as it's a big ask for them to fly around the world after that brutal game. However we have folau on the bench for that just in case moment

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Newcastle Falcons
Manager – Driver

01. Matt Mullen	09. Greig Laidlaw
02. Rory Best	10. Owen Farrell
03. Carl Hayman
04. Ed Slater	11. Charlie Sharples
05. Geoff Parling	12. Jean De Villers
06. Dan Lydiate	13. John Davies
07. Will Fraser	14. Charles Pitatau
08. Immanol Harinordiquey	15. Rob Miller

:-
16.George McGuigan 17.Soana Tonga'uhia 18.Scott Wilson 19.Yoaan Maestri 20.Richie McCaw 21.Kieron Read 22.Nick Phipps 23.Ben Smith

Opposition added

Northampton Saints
Manager – Dammit_Chris

01. Mako Vunipola	09. Gareth Davies
02. Dylan Hartley (c)	10. Nick Evans
03. Ramiro Herrera
04. Joe Launchbury	11. Vereniki Goneva
05. Courtney Lawes	12. Matt Giteau
06. Schalk Burger	13. Manu Tuilagi
07. Chris Robshaw	14. Tommy Bowe
08. Sergio Parisse	15. Leigh Halfpenny (k)

:-
16. Rob Webber 17. Trevor Nyakane 18. Logi Mulipola 19. Jonny Gray 20. Billy Vunipola 21. Joe Simpson 22. Julian Savea 23. Ben Foden

Tactics: Clermont have not had the best start to the season, whereas Saints have got try BP in all but one game so far this season and will look to play at a high tempo and intensity, forcing the home team into mistakes and getting our big ball carriers on the ball as early as possible. The aim is to ware down Clermont and then unleash our bench for when the game opens up late on.

Set Piece and Pack: Our pack has been selected for its strong set piece, which is vital to get a second away victory in a row against Clermont, who we beat last year with a team that wasn't as strong as the one we have picked today. Four quality lineout jumpers to mix up the attack, and five full internationals to bring off the bench to keep the pack going forward for 80 minutes. No natural no7 for Clermont so will target this area with our pack.

Control: Picked Evans and Giteau as the 10/12 combination to ensure we win the kicking battle against Clermont. Have Davies at no9 who has more international experience and club games than his counterpart and believer we have the advantage in the no2, 8, 9 and 10 shirts. Halfpenny selected for his goal kicking and to make every penalty we secure count.

Power: Will get the ball to our big ball carriers to keep us getting over the gainline and putting pressure on the home teams defence. Bench is picked for impact and will let us finish strong.

Harlequins
Manager – Steven_Sharks

01. Tony Woodcock	09. Ruan Pienaar
02. Schalk Brits	10. Steven Myler (k)
03. Kieran Brookes
04. Bakkies Botha	11. Jack Nowell
05. George Kruis	12. Jamie Roberts
06. Jamie Gibson	13. Jan Serfontein
07. Tom Wood (c)	14. Frank Halai
08. Damien Chouly	15. Juan Martin Hernandez

16. Rob Buchanan 17. Gjorji Jgenti 18. John Afoa 19. Jim Hamilton 20. Mamuka Gorgodze 21. Karl Dickson 22. Colin Slade 23. Jonathan Joseph

Sale Sharks
Manager – SJE

01. Marcos Ayerza	09. Danny Care
02. David Paice	10. Johnny Sexton
03. Davit Zirakishvilli
04. Dave Attwood	11. Simon Zebo
05. Christian Day	12. Francois Steyn
06. Matt Garvey	13. George Pisi
07. Matt Todd	14. Semesa Rokoduguni
08. Charles Ollivon	15. Willie Le Roux

16. Jack McGrath 17. Tommy Taylor 18. Rabah Slimani 19. Will Skelton 20. Steven Luatua 21. Kieran Marmion 22. JJ Hanrahan 23. Kyle Eastmond

We will adopt a territory first approach and play the game in the Scarlets half forcing them to play from deep.

- Win the kicking dual. Strong and intelligent kickers selected throughout the backline to ensure we dominate the territorial battle. We will constantly put the ball into the corners.

- Tight carrying game. When in opposition territory we will look to carry close to the ruck and suck defenders in, only going wide when it is absolutely on to do so.

- Fast ball is crucial. Mobile pack and physical midfield to clear out rucks and ensure quick ball. We will look to get over the gain line off all carries to make it easier to do so.

- Attack from the scrum. Strong technical front row backed up by a powerful second row will look to build a platform for Ollivon, Care & Sexton. An area we will look to target if winning.

- Make ground from the lineout. Look to throw to the front or middle of the line, get the maul rolling and suck in defenders to create space. If uncontested look to shorten the line and have Ollivon run down the 10/12 channel.

- Straight line blitz defence. Focused on winning the gain line collisions and driving the ball carrier back. Line speed is crucial. Care will sweep behind the line to cover chips and grubbers.

- Counter the opposition kicking game. Our back three have been instructed to sit deep on defence to cover kicks. All are comfortable under the high ball.

- Target the breakdown. Committed to the breakdown with Todd fetching for the ball, supported by the rest of the pack when needed. We will always look to turn the ball over.

Wasps
Manager: Ozzy3213     
               

01. Joe Marler	09. Aaron Smith
02. Bismarck du Plesiss	10. Aaron Cruden
03. Dave Wilson
04. Romain Millo-Chluski	11. Anthony Watson
05. Sebastien Vahaamahina	12. Ma'a Nonu
06. Jerome Kaino	13. Henry Slade
07. Marcell Coetzee	14. Marland Yarde
08. Duane Vermeulen	15. Delon Armitage

16. Tom Youngs 17. Paul James 18. Ben Alexander 19. Paul Willemse 20. Steffon Armitage 21. Ben Youngs 22. Shane Geraghty 23. Tim Nanai-Williams

Standard wet weather tactics. Use the boots of Cruden, Slade and Armitage to play for territory, carry close to the ruck and wear the down. Only open up in the opposition half and if it is completely on to do so. Blitz defence with Smith sweeping with particular pressure aimed at their backs who have kicking games to hurry them and ensure we win the kicking battle.

mark

Leicester Tigers
Manager – LukeLovesLuka

01. Alex Corbisiero	09. Micky Young
02. Agustin Creevy	10. Paddy Jackson (k)
03. Cencus Johnston
04. Kearnan Myall	11. Ugo Monye
05. Victor Matfield (c)	12. Tamati Ellison
06. Francois Louw	13. Rene Ranger
07. JMF Lobbe	14. Drew Mitchell
08. Thomas Waldrom	15. Sean Maitland

.
16. Christopher Tolofua 17. Max Lahiff 18. Paul Doran-Jones 19. Tom Price 20. Tom Johnson 21. Dwayne Peel 22. Brock James 23. Matt Banahan

1 nick wood
2 Adriaan Strauss
3 Nicola Mas
4 eben Etzbeth
5 George Robson
6 Alberts
7 Salvi
8 Heaslip
9 Dan Robson
10 Dan Carter
11 Johnny May
12 Matt Toomua
13 Juan De Jongh
14 Hosea Gear
15 Andreas Masi 
16 Guthro Steenkamp
17 Joe Grey
18 Juan Figallo
19 Elliot Stooke
20 Yacoub Camara
21 TJ Perenara
22 Danny Cipriani
23 Israel Folau

TARGET BREAKDOWN – We have a big mobile physically stronger bunch and will hit rucks with venom. We will Send numbers in and try and effect turnovers or Disrupt ball.we believe the likes of  Alberts Salvi and heaslip has physicality and the power to swamp their backrow.Backed by our  front 5 and this is an area we will flood.

TARGET back 3 – in greasy conditions we will Look to Kick in behind and generally torment them 

TARGET SCRUM – front 5 in good form for  glos. We want  to disrupt their ball and go quickly on ours 

Half backs- Robson in top form will look to threaten around the ruck but his job is to give it to carter who will dictate. 
Carter Will challenge line and kick When necessary. We want to play high tempo and move Newcastle around. We will do this by using runners off ten to smash holes and look to flood.



General - We've selected a team packed with power and physicality. We Have a lot more carriers in the pack and will use this to dominate and get front foot ball. We believe their
Lack of carrying will give is the upper hand. We will use this to run the legs off Newcastle And play an offloading game. When in behind We will Flood through with our quick Backs targeting mismatches  

Line out – We have options galore in Robson etzbeth  Alberts heaslip and will use this to disrupt.
On our ball we will mix It but as game progresses go Off The top more To Get in to there backline 


Defence - Blitz defence with high intensity and big hits, looking to drive past the ball player if the ball hits the deck. Scrum half to sweep behind the defensive line.

Bench - Game changing bench with Palu Cips Perenara etc. Our intention is not to bring on players who played in the bledisloe last week as it's a big ask for them to fly around the world after that brutal game. However we have folau on the bench for that just in case moment

Tactics added.

Munster 21-19 Leicester Tigers

Some form issues for Tigers sees the set piece fairly even. Bigger names in the Tigers back row but great form in the Munster trio keep the breakdown even. More of a carrying threat from the Tigers pack though. Half backs to the Irish side on current form but more to the Tigers midfield. Feel Tigers haven't enough of a pack edge to win away at Thomond.

Harlequins 22-15 Toulouse

Can't see a lot of budge in the pack battle in this one. Greater control from the Quins half backs is the key difference here.

London Wasps 25-17 Ospreys

Wasps pack can get on top at the breakdown and scrum and provide a comfortable day at the office for the backs considering the conditions.

Clermont Auvergne 26-26 Northampton Saints

Scrum edge to Clermont. More of a carrying threat from the Saints pack but don't see either side edging the breakdown. Half backs even. Evans better flyhalf but struggling for form against Lopez. Davies edges 9 but experience gap not as big as claimed. Giteau provides extra control and more quality to the Saints back three but lacking a little form. Don't feel Saints have the pack advantage to win away in France but bench impact from late on is deserving of a draw.

Newcastle Falcons 21-23 Gloucester

Don't see a set piece edge but the Glaws back row can get at the breakdown a bit more and cause Falcons problems. Both 10s struggling for form but Carter offers more. Laidlaw a level above Robson currently. Falcons midfield stronger but Glaws not weak here. More in the back three for Glaws. Cips offers a good option for Glaws while Falcons will struggle if Miller needs to cover 10. Glaws with tactics targetting the breakdown and positioning of the Falcons wings but if looking to "torment" the Falcons back three won't be playing high tempo carrying as much? Glaws better organised and see better ball in this one and pick up an important away win.

Munster 14-15 Leicester

Munster were excellent last night but Tigers look strong in the pack and won't let Munster get the platform, good win for Tigers.

Harlequins 21-20 Toulouse

See Quins getting on top in the scrum but Toulouse pack a little stronger overall. Toulouse problem is at half back and probably stops them getting the win. Serfontein better at 12 for me but Quins shade the backs and just get home.

Wasps 32-20 Ospreys

Ospreys looked good last week but this is a different side to Treviso. Liking the Wasps front and backrow a lot but engine room has question marks over it at top level. Past there it's all Wasps bar Slade, good win.

Scarlets 18-23 Sale

Scarlets were excellent last week against an outstanding Toulon but Sale have went in strong. See Sale edging the scrum, oack and halfbacks but Scarlets a little better in the backs. Tough fought win for a good Sale side.

Clermont 28-26 Northampton

Outstanding match ups all the park. Scrum and physicality to ASM in a brutal forwards battle. Half backs to ASM and nothing to split the backs. ASM just very hard to beat and can see them sneaking this one. Game of the round by far.

For European competition at least 8 England qualified players in your match day 23, and at least 6 of those must be in your starting XV.

Matt you only have 4 starting and 7 in squad, Luke has 5 starting.

league 4 and 4 Europe 5and 5 I thougjt?

Not sure Luke, just going off the main page.

It's 4 and 4 in Europe I asked SJE on this and he confirmed. Forgot to add an English back in

6 starting works so well, didn't know it had changed. Everyone else has 6??

Is it automatic loss for wrong EQ?

AP - 8 in matchday 23, 4 must be starters.
Europe - 8 in matchday 23, 6 must be starters.

Thought so Pete

That's me and luke getting fined then

Pts deduction and loss of match I think???

Tough on Driver, your team is 2 EQ short which hugely impacts the quality.

Pretty sure no one has lost a match from this sort of thing before, if it gets spotted teams normally lose some players from the subs bench and get fined afterwards.

There have been quite a few times this season where people have played guys in their team who were in the match day squads during the RC and wasn't picked up on, seems the same as that.

It's the first time I've seen EQ get picked up, 3 discrepancies in Matts case (missing 2 EQ starters & short on overall EQ).

There really should be some impact in this match tbh.

It's a point per player.

Think driver gets fined for no tactics also 


Think SJE has introduced a fine for late tactics a happened to me the other week

Sgt_Pooly wrote:It's the first time I've seen EQ get picked up, 3 discrepancies in Matts case (missing 2 EQ starters & short on overall EQ).

There really should be some impact in this match tbh.

Happened loads of times before. Why are you not also picking out luke who is also short? It's a genuine mistake also it's none of your business and SjE can sort it however he sees fit. Think I will get a 3 point fine

Calm down sweetheart.

I did mention Luke also, he did only have one though.

Its a 3 point fine for Matt and 2 points for Luke (2 weeks short). No one has ever been given a default loss for ineligible team sheets during my time in the game. 

You were told 6 starters and 8 in the squad when you asked last week Matt.

Usually for ineligibles once they are picked up the player is removed from the squad and the bench goes a man short. As its EQ will bring the starting team up to the 6 EQ and the bench will go short for both sides.

anonmattyt wrote:
Think driver gets fined for no tactics also 
Think SJE has introduced a fine for late tactics a happened to me the other week

You were punished for breaking teamsheet deadlines as has Fluxy & myself so far. There has never been punishments for late tactics or I'd be fining someone every week.

Would make foreigns fun, we'd all be skint

No hooker, lock or FH/CE cover.......tough craic that Matt

SirJohnnyEnglish wrote:2 points for Luke (2 weeks short).

My argument would be thought I was within rules (something i've never been punished for before in 3 years) and last week's wasn't mentioned as I obviously thought was legal selection, so two points harsh.

But i'm not the type to kick up a fuss

Munster 24-20 Tigers
Quins 28-21 Toulouse
Wasps 32-23 Ospreys
Scarlets 17-28 Sale
Clermont 31-26 Saints
Newcastle 36-23 Glos

Thought it was 10 in the 23 in Europe, good to know

If late tactics were fined every week, I'd be screwed, almost always post them at 1-2 am!

Munster 21 - 20 Tigers
Quins 19 - 16 Toulouse
Wasps 22 - 9 Ospreys
Scarlets 13 - 23 Sale
Clermont 28 - 29 Saints
Falcons 30 - 20 Gloucester

I am unsure if tactics matter anymore. This game has gone to the dogs

Simply have to punish lack of replacements, Matt, going into an away European cup game with 2 players missing (one strictly needed to make a legal team I might add) is a huge disadvantage!

Matt, to counter, I seem to recall you doing well in a match against me a while back without tactics.

You suggested (and were generally backed up I might add) that people know how you play so missing tactics weren't that much of a big deal.

anonmattyt wrote:I am unsure if tactics matter anymore. This game has gone to the dogs

That's a very unfair comment just because things aren't going your way. Johnny does a fantastic job and it's an individual's call on wether they feel the numbers on the bench would have a detrimental effect on the score line.

Perhaps you need to stop throwing your teddies and just get a team in that matches the criteria?

My point is there is no consistency.

Other people have ineligibles and it's picked up after and they just receive a point fine but the match stands.

As I have some Geordie cannon fodder scrutinising my every movement ( in a way that is really quite disturbing )pointing out everything all of a sudden my match gets ripped to shreds where as when it's picked up after a match as in other cases the scores are unaffected.

Very inconsistent all round

Not like you to make things personal.

I'm RAF and not a Geordie by the way. Nice to see you have so much respect for the Armed forces......

As I said, if you'd have put the correct team in your have been ok. There's nobody else to blame here really.

Thought I posted these at the same time I posted the Challenge Cup results, just had a look through and they aren't there, have just copied and pasted from them earlier so was before any players got taken out of teams.

Munster 15-15 Leicester Tigers
Luke unlucky in that the Munster game was on the Friday night and they backed up another impressive performance with another one. Like the backrow of Louw, Lobbe and Waldroum, but for me they struggle for the win in the halfbacks, as Munster pair in such good form. Very close game and Tigers are better than the Sarries team in the pack so come away with a draw.

Harlequins 24 - 19 Toulouse
Really like the balance of Steve's team in the pack and backline, have a real threat all over the park and a nice balance of youth and experience with a lot of form players too. With guys like Wood, Botha and Roberts they will stand up to the physicality of Toulouse and if you can do that you'll win, espc as Toulouse arent the team they once were. Form of Myler off the kicking tee v helpful too.

Wasps 18 - 6 Ospreys
The heavy rain stops this one being an absolute humping from the home team, with the back three they have they would have run riot. The Wasps pack will still put Ospreys to the sword though, but the elements stop them securing a bp win.

Scarlets 12 - 17 Sale Sharks
Similar story as the above but the Scarlets pack will have more parity with the away team and they've shown they can hold their own with the Toulon pack away from home. Conditions take out the threat of the Sale backthree, but there is more quality across their backline, so get the away win. Added detail in the tactics help push the scoreline up for Sale too.

Newcastle 19-23 Gloucester
Looks as though Mat is really targeting the European Cup this year round, a pack that will compete with Falcons and having Heaslip in such good form will do him a massive favour. Lack of tactics do have an impact for Falcons and having McCaw and Read on the bench is a big call given the games that they have had and that NZ are playing in USA next week. Once AIs are over and Faclons have all their players back they will do far, far better in Europe and in the AP. Experience of Carter and impact of Foloa from the bench enough for Gloucester here.

anonmattyt wrote:I am unsure if tactics matter anymore. This game has gone to the dogs

Bit harsh mate considering it's European ties and I thought from general consensus that tactics were limited or no tactics unless it was against someone in the league?

I'll be honest and say that the game hasn't gone to the dogs because of the tactics being used or not , I'v not been supplying tactics as i'm working every shift under the sun as i'm in the middle of moving into my first house, so as you can imagine i'm quite busy.

The reason the game for me has taken a downward turn is the constant bickering over mediocre things and it's ruining the game for everyone , i come on here to discuss rugby , have some banter and enjoy the game. This is becoming harder as the weeks go by, I think some people in this game need to have a serious think about how much they let comments by someone on a internet forum get to them, chances are you'll never meet this person in your lifetime so why take offence and bite?

That's my two cents on the game at the moment.

SJE does a fantastic job running this game and doesn't need any sht stirring getting in the way of his great work.

Questioning scores while predictions are open is extremely poor form. If you have issues take it privately or wait for predictions to close like everyone else does. 

Agree with Driver 100% the constant snipping from all sides is boring and tedious. No body should be getting wound up over a game at our age.

Munster 19 - 17 Leicester

Need to win the territorial battle and dominate up front and I can't see Leicester doing this. Up front they'll prove competitive but Young and Jackson don't have enough to control the pace and position of the game whereas Murray and Keatley masters.

Wasps 38 - 20 Ospreys

This is a very strong Wasps side and despite Ospreys excellent start to the season they get nothing here. Wasps control things up front and this feeds into the backs. Whilst I think Wasps are quite weak at the line out here they still have plenty to win the game.

Scarlets 20 - 25 Sale

A very 'loseable' game here for Sale but they do have enough to win but not with a TBP. The packs remain relatively even with the Sale half backs ahead and the outside backs marginally to Sale. Exciting game all round.

Clermont 19 - 24 Saints

Again Saints have enough to win but no BP. On paper at least Clermont aren't as formidable in recent years. Saints are well set out up front and in the backs and can control the game and play where they want to with the Evans/Giteau axis.

Newcastle 25 - 24 Gloucester

As far as I'm concerned I'm taking the lack of tactics from Driver and Matt being two men down as evens. Not much up front with front rows even and locks one a piece. Back rows even. Half backs contrasting but form goes to Gloucester. Centres just to Newcastle though a huge Toomua fan. Back threes evens. Not an easy game to call but at home with control at half backs its hard to see past Falcons.

Sorry guys not much time!!

Munster 18-19 Tigers
Tigers just edge this with their centres taking te advantage.

Quins 23-20 Toulouse
Quins take this with a good balance in their pack and some very strong carriers.

Wasps 32-18 Ospreys
Front row won't this giving good set piece to danerys backs.

Scarlets 10-19 Sale
Sharks back line a step above but Svarlets did put in a good showing last night.

Clermont 18-18 Saints
I've looked at these teams for a while and really can't split them to be honest, nothing between them with Saints away but at home would be a different story. Davies out for a while I think Chris so bear that in mind.

Falcons 22-19 Glos
No tactics against a weakened side due to selection. Have read all te bickering because I can't be bothered to sink to that level.
I think overall that Falcons will edge the pack battle and sneak a good win here today. Driver, go a bit careful now it's playing N.Z players when away with the squad.